Palm Beachers should brace for beach erosion this weekend, the National Weather Service in Miami says.

It’s the result of a setup we’ve seen several times this fall. A cold front was forecast to push through the area Friday night and settle south of the Florida peninsula.

At the same time, high pressure will build Saturday and Sunday in the Mid-Atlantic, and the pressure differences will create a northeast wind flow.

However, there’s an additional twist this time. A low pressure system was expected to form off the coast of the Carolinas and begin pushing south toward the Bahamas.

Computer models have varying ideas of how strong this disturbance may get, but the GFS predicts it will become a closed-off low pressure system. None of the models are predicting tropical development, but the storm could stir things up in the Atlantic.

Wave heights may exceed 12 feet off the Palm Beach coast on Saturday and Sunday, according to Mike Bettwy, a meteorologist with the NWS in Miami.

“Significant beach erosion is possible, especially along the Palm Beach Coast during high tide,” he said Friday.

In addition, expect dangerous rip currents and dangerous surf conditions at the beaches through Monday. It will be mostly dry, but a quick, stray shower could pass through as well.

Temperatures should be coolish. Forecasters predicted a low early Saturday morning of around 60 in Palm Beach, but with lows closer to 50 to the northwest, around Lake Okeechobee. Saturday’s high will be around 77.

The winds will begin to pick up on Saturday, gusting into the mid-20s. The strongest winds should happen Sunday, forecasters said. They’ll be steady out of the northeast at 18 mph with gusts to 24 mph.

About the Author

John Nelander is a freelance writer, book editor and publisher in West Palm Beach. Weather Matters features news and observations about the weather with a focus on what's happening in South Florida. The blog also looks at the latest studies on climate change as well as what's happening in the weather forecasting biz. His website is www.pbeditorialservices.com.